The invention relates generally to welding systems, and, more particularly, to systems and methods for diagnosing an error in a weld secondary component of a welding system.
Welding is a process that has become ubiquitous in various industries and applications, such as construction, ship building, and so forth. Welding systems typically include a variety of secondary components, which may include secondary cabling as well as secondary equipment. Such secondary components may include welding torches, weld fixturing, weld cables, and so forth, the quality of which may impact the quality of the weld obtained in a welding operation. Unfortunately, the high current levels associated with typical welding processes often lead to degradation of the secondary cabling and/or equipment over time. For example, the number of operational strands of copper, or their integrity within a weld cable may be reduced over time by environmental factors and incidences, such as the weld cabling being run over by construction vehicles.
While a decrease in weld quality may be observed when the weld is impacted by such weld secondary issues, it is often difficult and time consuming to identify the root cause as the weld secondary issue. For instance, because copper strands are located within an insulation jacket of the weld cable, it may be difficult to readily identify weld cabling as the source of the observed decrease in weld quality. Furthermore, even when weld secondary equipment has been identified as the source of the poor weld quality, it may be difficult to determine which secondary weld component is the underlying source. Accordingly, there exists a need for improved systems and methods for the identification and location of weld secondary issues.